Post navigation

Be Fierce. Be You. Be Present.

How to get over the jitters about the first meeting.

Being new to Portland last year and also being new to Beaverton MOPS I was wondering how my first meeting would go. Add to that the fact that I missed the first “Get to know each other” meeting and you can probably feel my nerves. Let’s be honest, I had a mix of emotions—from excited to worried, those that keep you thinking about your first day of school. In a way it is… but much better I promise!

Now that I’m in the Steering Committee and entering my second year at MOPS I can give you some pointers that I myself will need to follow. Don’t worry if you don’t know what “Steering” is, there might be a lot of new words floating around the room that first day, you will eventually add them to your vocabulary.

Here are my pointers:

Ask lots of questions. Most might be the usual “where is the daycare?” or “where do I sit?” but don’t worry because we want to help you out.

Introduce yourself to your group. If you don’t know this yet, everyone is separated in groups that way it makes it easier to get to know each other. We all want to get to know you so don’t be afraid to be the first one to say hi.

Don’t feel like you’re being judged. This pretty much means Be Yourself. I’m an introvert at heart so I spend a lot of time listening first to others and slowly integrating myself to the group. Do what works for you!

Talk about a common interest: our kids. Share photos, stories, and tell us how your morning went getting there with your kiddos.

Lastly, don’t get discouraged. This is a hard one because you sometimes have high expectations and you might not connect to your group on the first day. Please give it time, first impressions aren’t always perfect and there are tons of opportunities to connect to others throughout the year.

I hope this helps those who are new. Feel free to add your own tips below. Can’t wait to see everyone again and make new friends.